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No need to get snippy. It's the unpopular opinions thread, we're not gonna agree on everything.
I guess my ultimate unpopular opinion here by far would be that, even though I love the toylines and wish I'd grown up with them, I am always going to think of the cartoons first (despite the fact I will always think of all "canons" when it comes to inspiration) - I know the overall response to this will basically be "Oh, it's a brony thing...", but I do have a love and respect for the toylines as well, but brony or not, the animations was what I started with, so I do value them.
Quote from: MJNSEIFER on February 13, 2022, 02:35:11 PMI guess my ultimate unpopular opinion here by far would be that, even though I love the toylines and wish I'd grown up with them, I am always going to think of the cartoons first (despite the fact I will always think of all "canons" when it comes to inspiration) - I know the overall response to this will basically be "Oh, it's a brony thing...", but I do have a love and respect for the toylines as well, but brony or not, the animations was what I started with, so I do value them.I have to admit that although the old pony toys are cute, to me MLP has always been mainly about cartoons as well, I grew up with the G1 cartoon and then as an adult in the 2000s I also developed a liking for My Little Pony Tales and partially for the G3 videos. I hate it when people perpetuate this fake dichotomy that you can either be a brony and like the G4 cartoon or a collector and like toys of different generations.
Unpopular opinion now, maybe? But I don't really like ponies having bridles and saddles.
Quote from: Taffeta on February 13, 2022, 02:46:30 PMUnpopular opinion now, maybe? But I don't really like ponies having bridles and saddles.They're just pointless, really. Related, I was thinking of like a... theory? Lack of a better term? For G1's progress:SpoilerHorse phase -> Fantasy phase -> Domestic/Modern Phase"Horse phase" obviously being the bridles and saddles, but also Megan's inclusion. The stable is also very horsey, but what makes it even MORE horsey are the trough accessories! Early MLP feels like "horses, but what if it was purple?" rather than how we know it today. "Fantasy phase" is the mainstream view of MLP. No need to explain further. Magical little ponies with magical little powers living in castles and going on adventures. "Domestic/Modern Phase" is obviously Tales, but also the shift of the brand entirely. From "magical ponies in castles" to "prom queen ponies" and "house furniture playset and pregnant mom pony". G1 is the most baby-heavy of all the gens, but instead of just "babies" there's an emphasis on "families" like, obviously, the Family sets (Sweet Celebrations, etc) in late-G1. A quick glance at MLW (which I know isn't the authority on MLP history, but it's good enough with something like this), early G1 looks like it's mostly adult ponies with some babies. But by year 7-8, it's halved, with a LOT of baby releases... like half adult ponies, half babies. Of course when I mean family I mean "mom, dad, baby", not "random orphaned baby" and "adult pony with her cloned baby self".I know G1's progress was just a matter of them refreshing the brand to make it more appealing to its demographic, but it sort of repeats itself with the other gens:G2: Simple Phase -> Fantasy Phase -> Domestic PhaseG2 started off with basic playsets and themes, went onto the royalty thing, then finished off with a mansion mom and baby playset. The focus on babies as time went on I think also contributes to the "domesticity" of the gen, since if you have babies, you probably will want to roleplay "family" stories. Cooking, school, and gardening playsets as well.G3: Simple Phase -> Fantasy Phase -> Domestic/Baby PhaseG3 started off with very simple stories that didn't do much, but A Very Minty Christmas and The Runaway Rainbow gave the ponies more exciting adventures to go on halfway through the gen. Finish off the "Fantasy Phase" with Twinkle Wish Adventure. These ponies are going on adventures across the land and not just planning parties in Ponyville like the Free Media movies. As for "Domesticity", we have the Ponyville playsets-- ponies living in a town, a society, rather than a magical world. Ultimately, the gen wraps up altogether with Newborn Cuties. Gens seem to have a focus on babies at the end of their run...? Is this a "last ditch effort" to make money? "OK we gotta bring out the big guns, give them babies. Little girls love babies."G4: Simple Phase -> Fantasy Phase -> Domestic Phase"Simple Phase" being the "slice of life" early episodes of FiM, "Fantasy Phase" being the more... "geek franchise" later seasons, and "Domestic Phase" being Pony Life. "Modern Phase" also fits Pony Life, just as Tales was G1's "Modern Phase". Although they came before PL, you could throw in a brief "baby phase" with the... 2 sets of baby Mane 6 merch we got...? (The 6-pack minifigures and the Pinkie/Twilight dolls)G5 has just begun but I wonder if we'll see a similar pattern. Maybe Hasbro can shake things up and give us babies right away. As for saddles... I think they can be done well on a pony. I like how G4 handled saddles, as a fashion thing. A little band on the back with a frilly skirt. I like simple clothes on ponies, not a button-up blouse, pants, and tennis shoes. Anything more *saddley* is pointless as there are no humans, and bridles are ESPECIALLY weird. At least with a saddle you could have a pet ride on your back or something... what's a cat going to do with a bridle?
But that still asks the question, should the ponies be being ridden? I'm a sentient being. I don't want someone gallivanting around on my back telling me where to go
Quote from: Taffeta on February 15, 2022, 09:53:15 AMBut that still asks the question, should the ponies be being ridden? I'm a sentient being. I don't want someone gallivanting around on my back telling me where to go If we're forced to, I'd agree.We carry pets, children and occasionally other people if we need to. I mean, if I was a pony and the annoying two-legger that needed to come along was terribly slow... I probably would. The real reason I don't carry slow people around now is that it's tiring. But a pony doesn't have that problem. It doesn't mean that they get to tell me where to go. Even with a hackamore, horses still basically go where they want. They're just choosing to listen to their rider/friend. But honestly, if it was easy to carry other people who have movement issues, why wouldn't I do it? Adorable cat and horse for fun:https://youtu.be/dG0pbTItcDc
Quote from: brightberry on February 15, 2022, 10:36:51 AMQuote from: Taffeta on February 15, 2022, 09:53:15 AMBut that still asks the question, should the ponies be being ridden? I'm a sentient being. I don't want someone gallivanting around on my back telling me where to go If we're forced to, I'd agree.We carry pets, children and occasionally other people if we need to. I mean, if I was a pony and the annoying two-legger that needed to come along was terribly slow... I probably would. The real reason I don't carry slow people around now is that it's tiring. But a pony doesn't have that problem. It doesn't mean that they get to tell me where to go. Even with a hackamore, horses still basically go where they want. They're just choosing to listen to their rider/friend. But honestly, if it was easy to carry other people who have movement issues, why wouldn't I do it? Adorable cat and horse for fun:https://youtu.be/dG0pbTItcDcI feel like we're probing deep and meaningful issues here, but it's somehow still fun and interesting xD.The irony of this is that I wrote pretty much my whole PhD thesis around the characterisation of horses in Japanese war tales, several of which are ridden by warriors (both with and without saddles).But there's one character who on two occasions carries his horse, rather than the other way around. First, across a river, because it's injured. And second, down a mountain, so it doesn't get hurt....If it was that kind of mutually beneficial relationship, I can see there's a good reason for a horse to carry a person.And the difference I guess between carrying an animal like a cat (aside the weight) is that the cat is probably not the one deciding where the horse should go, when it should stop, and so on. It would depend whether the horse was carrying the person as a favour, or whether the horse was being subjugated to the person's will, maybe....But this is way too deep for the unpopular opinions thread